The import and export value of trade between Zhanjiang and countries along the Belt & Road totaled 7.86 billion yuan ($1.2 billion) from January to October, a year-on year increase of 3.4 percent, according to statistics from Zhanjiang Customs.

The export value rose by 2.3 percent to reach 6.44 billion yuan during the January-October period, while the import value increased by 8.6 percent to 1.42 billion yuan.

As a pivot city along the Belt & Road, Zhanjiang has seen its export-import value continue to grow in recent years thanks to burgeoning local companies and preferential government policies.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and India were the major trade partners of Zhanjiang. From January to October, the city's import and export value with the former rose by 8.1 percent to 4.51 billion yuan, accounting for 57 percent in total.

Private enterprises remained the pillar of Zhanjiang's import and export with a share of 45 percent. State-owned enterprises showed a strong momentum, as the export value soared 33.6 percent to 2.17 billion yuan and import value increased by 12.5 percent to 770 million yuan.

In the first 10 months of this year, Zhanjiang's foreign trade was dominated by general trade, which amounted to 7.17 billion yuan and accounted for 91.3 percent of total trade. The import-export value of processing trade was 610 million yuan during the same period.